NSAC's Blog

Editor’s note: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) originally announced the organic buffer initiative in February 2016 at the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) annual conference. NSAC published a blog post immediately following this announcement, which may have some additional, useful information for those interested in learning more about the initiative.

“Organic farming already provides many environmental benefits, including improved soil health and water quality,” said Greg Fogel, Senior Policy Specialist with NSAC. “The Organic Buffer Initiative is a great new tool that will help organic farmers looking to take their conservation efforts to the next level, and we hope that our farmers’ guide will help them seamlessly access and utilize the program.”

NSAC’s guide includes eligibility and application information, program basics, detailed descriptions of key conservation practices and associated payments, as well as two producer profiles and resources for additional information.

The buffer initiative, which is administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA) as part of the Conservation Reserve Program’s (CRP) Continuous Sign-up (CCRP), aims to establish up to 20,000 acres of new conservation buffers. Conservation buffers can come in many varieties, but are generally described as a small areas or strips of land in permanent vegetation that are designed to slow runoff, provide shelter for wildlife, and prevent erosion along riverbank areas.

Through the Organic Buffer Initiative FSA provides farmers with rental payments, cost-share payments, and in many cases incentive payments for land that is set-aside for conservation buffers for a period of 10-15 years. The initiative helps organic producers limit the impacts of pesticide drift, enhance their conservation systems, and meet National Organic Program (NOP) certification requirements for natural resource and biodiversity conservation.

Unlike the general sign-ups that occur under other CRP programs, CCRP producers may enroll at any time throughout the year. The program also has no bidding and ranking system, and the land is enrolled automatically if it meets the eligibility criteria.

Under the new organic initiative, farmers are free to use whichever CCRP eligible practice or suite of practices that best suits their particular needs. However, in most cases, we believe farmers will be most interested in the following practices:

If a field borders a stream, either the filter strip or the riparian buffer practice will be best suited to that particular border.

If a farm is located in an area where trees are well suited and high winds a consideration, the windbreak option may be suitable.

In most other instances, the two practices that are likely to be adaptable as field borders are the pollinator habitat practice or the upland buffers practice.

About the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition is a grassroots alliance that advocates for federal policy reform supporting the long-term social, economic, and environmental sustainability of agriculture, natural resources, and rural communities. Learn more: http://sustainableagriculture.net